Last Sunday afternoon, this columnist received an unexpected email from a public relations firm with a statement on behalf of the Singapore Turf Club about the departure of Kranji’s champion trainer Michael Clements. Clements, fed up with the inaction of the Turf Club and carrying the weight of his peers on his shoulders with the... Read More

Rob Crabtree is sure glad he kept “a fetlock” in promising colt Scampi, a first crop son of Darley shuttler Blue Point from his stakes-performed Sistonic, herself a three-quarter sister to Black Caviar. The Dorrington Farm breeder sold the colt for $750,000 at the Magic Millions in January to trainer Ciaron Maher and it’s the... Read More

Horsetrader: Robert Sangster and the Rise and Fall of the Sport of Kings, is coming to an audio platform. First published in 1993 by authors Patrick and Nick Robinson (no relation), the book details the fascinating rise of Sangster, Coolmore’s John Magnier and Vincent O’Brien and how they drove the commercialisation of thoroughbred racing and... Read More

So, Racing Victoria has shelved its “Drive To Survive” mics-on-jockeys and trainer teams idea for at least 12 months, after a board meeting earlier this week. Not surprising, particularly after RV chief executive Andrew Jones’ series of car crash interviews last week on racing media – Racing.com, SENTrack and RSN – where in particular he... Read More

I barrack for Essendon (haven’t had much to cheer about for 20 years) and I was as parochial as you can get in the Ashes, supporting the Aussies against the Poms in the five Tests just gone during the current English summer. There’s also a passing interest in the State Of Origin in the rugby... Read More